Seeding-machine.



No. 702,486. Patented June l7, I902.

I J. H. SAMUELS.

'SEEDINGMACHINE.

I (Application filed Nov. 1, 1901.) (No Model.) a Sheets8heet I.

llllllllll II II II II III II ll ll lllJl No 702,486. I Paten ted JuneI7, I902.

J. H. SAMUELS.

SEEDING MACHINE.

(Application filed Nov. 1, 1901., I I (Q0 MO BL) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

No. 702,486. Patented June l7, I902.

J. H. SAMUELS. seamfle MACHINE.

(Application filed Nov. 1, 1901.) I (No Modgl.) 3 Sheets-$heet :4 sinsvirus on. PHOTO-LITNQ, WASHINGTON u c NITED STATES PAT NT YGFFICE.

JONATHAN H. SAMUELS, OF MOIIINE, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO D. M. SEOHLEROARRIAGE COMPANY, OF MOLINE, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLI NOIS.

S E EDING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent-No. 702,486, dated June 17,1902.

Application filed November 1, 1901 Serial No.'80,788. (No model.) I I Tat whont it mrty cmtcefn:

Be it known that- I, JONATHAN I-I. SAMUELS',

a citizen of the United States, residing at Moline, in the county ofRock Island andState of Illinois, have invented certainnew and use fulImprovements in Seeding-Machines, of which the following is aspecification, refer ones being had to the accompanying drawings.

10. My invention relates to seeding-machines,

to O. H. and-H. L. Dooley, reissued J uly'23,

1895, No. 1 1,504. In the best machine of this type known to me ithasbeen the practice to operate the seed-plate by'meansof a: shaft causedto rotate intermittently in the manner above described, for this purposethe shaft being provided with a sprocket-wheel which is loosely mounted;thereon and is com tinuously drivenfrom the carrying wheels of theplants! by means of a link belt running over a second sprocket-wheelconnected with the carrying-wheels. The sprocket-wheel on said shaft hasconnected to it aclutch member adapted to engage a secondclutch mem-l'ber mounted upon and keyed to said shaft,"

and such. clutch members -;are caused to interlock at stated intervalsby the action of the tappets 0nthe check-row wire. Such engagementcontinues at any. one time only during a single rotation of, the shaft,since they are automatically thrown out of engagement at the end of eachrotation. While the shaft is rotating the rotation of the seedplatedischarges a predetermined quantity of seed into the seed-tube, so thatthe seed supplied to the'seed-tube at any one of the inter- -thecheck-row Wire.

the claims. 5

from the drive-wheel.

vals is always the same. I The device used to throw theclutch membersout ofengagement in the apparatusabove referred toconsists of an armmounted on a rock-shaft and'adaptcd'by the rocking of the shaft to moveeither into or out.of position to throw such clutch members out ofengagement, the rocking of said shaft being effected by the tappets onIn such'prior device, owing 'to the construction of the apparatus, ithas been necessary to so mount said arm on the rock-shaft as to permitit to rock slightly independently of the shaft, two springs beingemployed, one acting to throw said arm inward toward the seed-plate andthe other acting to return the rock-shaft to its normal position afterits being rocked by the check-row wire. One of theifeatures of mypresent invention is the doing away with the necessity of using one ofsaid springs, so that a single spring may be employed both to restorethe rock-shaft to its normal position and to move the arm which throwsthe clutch members out of engagement into operative position.

Another feature of my invention consists in simplifying and improvingthe construction of the clutch mechanism, as hereinafter described.

What I regard as new will be set forth in 4 Referring to thedrawings,,Fig ure l is a partial plan view'of a corn-planter embodyingmy improvements 2 is. a partial front view of the controlling mechanism.Fig. 3 is asection on line 3:3 of Fig; 2, showing the I throw-out arm inits normal or operative position and the seed-plate shaft disconnectedFig. 4 is a similar view showing the throw-out arm in inoperativeposition. Fig. 5 is a view of part of the appao ratus shown in Fig. 3,showing the position of the parts just beforethe seed-plate shaft isdisconnected from thedrive-wh'eel by the action of the throw-out arm.Fig.6is a plan view of the controllingmechanism, Fig. 7is 5 a sectiononline 7 7 of FigfifS. -F ig. is a longitudinal section on. lineS lS ofFig. 6, and Fig. 9 is a section on line 9 9 of Fig: '2

' In the drawings,10 indicates the front frame of a corn-planter; 11,one of the seedboxes; I00

12, one of the carrying-wheels, and 13 the axle thereof.

14 indicates a sprocket-wheel mounted on the axle 13.

15 indicates a rock-shaft mounted on the front frame 10 and extendingtransverselyof the machine.

16 indicates a crank-arm secured upon and keyed to one end of therock-shaft15,as shown in Fig. 1.

17 indicates the usual check row lever, which in the construction shownis mounted in the usual manner between its ends upon a pivot 13 and isprovided with a fork at its outer end, through which passes the checkrowwire 19, having tappets 20 at. suitable intervals, the arrangement beingsuch that as the machine travels forward the tappets 20, striking thefork of the lever 17, rock it upon its pivot 18, moving the outer endbackward. The inner end of the lever 17 is connected by a link 21 withthe crank 16, so that when the lever 17 is operated by the tappets onthe check-row wire the crank 16 is moved forward, rocking the rock-shaft15 in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 4. As

soon as the tappets 20 release the lever 17 it returns to its normalposition by the action of a spring, which will be hereinafter described.

22 indicates an arm which may be termed a throw-out arm, because of thefunction which it performs, as will be hereinafter explained. Thethrow-out arm 22 is mounted upon the rock-shaft 15 and is securedthereto so as to oscillate therewith. As illustrated in Figs. 2 and 9,said arm 22 is mounted upon a sleeve 23, which fits upon the shaft 15and is secured in place by a split key 24. (See Fig. 4.) A pin 25, whichpasses through the shaft 15, sleeve 23, and arm 22, secures all theparts together, so that the arm 22 's rigidly connected with therock-shaft 15.

26 indicates a rotary shaft whichis mounted in suitable bearings inbrackets 27, carried by the frame of the machine. Said shaft isconnected by the usual gearing with the seedplate and hopper or seedbox11, so that the rotation of said shaft causes the seed-plate to rotate.The construction of the seed-plate and the gearing connecting it withthe seedplate shaft 26 are not illustrated in detail, because they arewell known and form no part of my present invention, and any suitabledevices for the purpose may be employed. A common construction isindicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1.

28 indicates a sleeve which is mounted on the seed-plate shaft 26 and isfixedly secured thereto, so as to rotate therewith. Preferably thisaction is secured by using a square shaft 26 and providing the sleeve 28with a square opening, so that it fits thereupon.

29 indicates an arm which is carried by and preferably formed integralwith the sleeve 28. Said arm projects from the sleeve 28 and carriesnear its outer end a pawl 30, which is mounted on a pivot 31, as shownin Figs. 3,

4, and 5. The pawl 30, or a portion thereof, is substantially in thesame vertical plane as the arm 22, so that under certain conditions saidpawl may be engaged by said arm, as will be hereinafter described.

2 indicates a sleeve which is mounted upon a portion of the sleeve 28and is adapted to 1'0- tate thereon. Said sleeve 32 carries asprocketwheel 33, which is preferably formed integral therewith, asshown in Fig. 8. It also carries at one end a ratchet'wheel 34, whichprefferablyis also formed integral with the sleeve The ratchet-wheel 34lies at that end of the sleeve 32 which is innermost when said sleeve ismounted on the sleeve 28, and when in position it lies under the pawl30, as best shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 6, and is adapted to be en gaged byit. The sprocket-wheel is connected by a chain 35 with thesprocket-wheel 14 on the axle 13, so that when the machine moves forwardthe upper portion of the chain moving in the direction indicated by thearrow in Fig. 1 causes the sprocket-wheel 33 and ratchet-wheel 34 torotate in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 4. The teeth ofthe ratchet-wheel 34 are inclined in the direction shown in Fig. 3, andthat portion of the pawl 30 which engages the ratchet-wheel is providedwith a hook 36, which is adapted to engage the ratchet-teeth, by whichconstruction when the ratchet-wheel 34 is rotated in the directionindicated it will carry with it the pawl 30 when said pawl is inengagement with it. The hook 36 of the pawl 30 is normallycaused toengage the teeth of the ratchetwheel 34 by a spring 37, mounted betweenthe opposite end of the pawl 30 and an adjacent portion 39 of the arm29, as shown in Fig. 7. The consequence is that when the pawl 30 is freeto act its hook 36 engages the teeth of the ratchet-wheel 34, andconsequently the rotation of the ratchet-wheel caused by the forwardmovement of the machine effects the rotation in a similar direction ofthe shaft 26, said shaft being keyed to the sleeve 28, which carries thepawl 30. lVhen, however, the pawl 30 is out of engagement with theratchet-wheel 34, the sprocket-wheel 33 and ratchet-wheel 34rotateindependently of the shaft 26, which remains stationary. The pawl 30 ismoved out of engagement with the ratchet-wheel 34 by the arm 22, theupper end of which normally lies in the path of said pawl as it iscarried around by the rotation of ,the ratchet-wheel 34. (See Fig. 2.)As shown in Figs. 2 and 6, a portion of the pawl 30 is deflected to oneside, forming a linger 40, which lies directly over the end of the arm22 and is provided on its under side with a lug 41, with which the endof the arm 22 engages, as shown in Fig. 3. The lug 41 is so placed withreference to the upper end of the arm 22 that when said arm 22 engagessaid lug the pawl will be held at such a distance from the ratchet-wheel34, Fig. 3, that the hook 36 will be clear of the ratchet-wheel, andconsequently the ratchet-wheel may ro gradually on the arm 22.

tate independently of the pawl. The under surface of the finger isinclined, as shown at .42 in Fig. 7, so that the pawl moves up When thearm 22 is rocked forward by the action of the checkrow wire, it movesout from under the pawl 30, which then drops into engagement with theratchet-wheel 34 under the action of the spring 37 The arm 22 is heldnormally in its operative position by the action of a spring 43, one endof which is connected to a short arm 44, carried .by the hub "45, bymeans of which the arm 22 is secured upon the rock-shaft 15, the

other end of said spring being connected to a bracket 46, secured to theframe of the machine, as shown in Figs. 1, 3, and 6. The spring 43 tendsto, pull the arm 44 forward, consequentlyv throwing the arm 22 back intoits operative position. At the same time this the lever 17 to its normalposition after it has been operatedby the check-row wire, a singlespring sufficing for both purposes.

As shown in Fig. .8, the inner face of the ratchet-wheel 34, which ispreferably more or less hollow, as shown, abuts against the flat face ofan annular flange 47, carried by the sleeve 28, and it is held. closelyin frictional contact therewith by means of a spring 48, mounted on theshaft 26, as bestshown in Figs. 6and 8. The spring 48 is confinedbetween a collar 49 at one end and a disk 50 at the other, a split key51 serving to hold the disk 50 in place. The collar'49 bears against theouter end of the sleeve 32. Oonsequentlythe spring 48 acts to force theinner face of the ratchet-wheel 34 against the flange 47 and hold saidparts tightly in frictional contact.

While this does not materially afiect the rotation of the sprocket-wheel33 and ratchetwheel 34 independently of the sleeve 28when,

frictional engagement of the ratchet-wheel 34 with the flange. 47 therewould be nothing to prevent the pawl 30 from moving .in the oppositedirection, (indicated by. the arrow .in Fig. 3,) and consequently, intoengagement with the ratchet-wheel 34. I This it has a natural tendencyto do, since the action of the spring 37 tends to force the book 36toward the ratchet-wheel 34, and if the arm 29, which carries the pawl30, were free to move in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 3it would do so under thestress of the spring 37, and consequently thehook 36 would ongage the teeth of the ratchet-wheel. Of courseimmediately after this engagement the pawl 30 would again be carriedinto contact with the arm 22 bythe rotation of the ratchet-wheel 34in-the opposite direction, and the pawl would again be thrown out ofengagement with the ratchet-wheel; but as soon as it disengaged theratchet-wheel it would againmove back into engagement in the mannerabove described, so that the pawl would constantly be engaging anddisengaging the ratchet-wheel, consequently causing wear on the teethand pawl, besides causing an objectionable clicking and more or lessvibrationof the machine. By the frictional engagement of theratchet-Wheel 34 and flange 47, however, this is avoided, since, asabove described, the friction between the parts is sufficient tocounteract the tendency of the pawl 30 to move backward under the-actionof the spring 37, and accordingly the pawl remains stationary inengagement with-the upper end of the arm 22 except-whensaid arm movesout from under it under the action of the check-row wire. The arm 22isprevented from moving inward too far by means ofa stop, 52, carried byit, which/e11- gages another stop 53,'carried byv the standard 27. I 1

The sprocket-wheel 33 and ratchet-wheel 34 are constantly-rotated in thedirection indicated byv the arrow in Fig. 4 While'the machine is movedforward; but, as will beevident from the foregoing description, theseedplate shaft 26 is not affected by such rotation except at statedintervals, because the pawl 30, which connects it With theratchet-wheel34, is held out of engagement withthe ratchetwheel by the arm 22. When,however, one of the tappets on the check-rowwire engages the lever 17,it rocks said lever,;c arryingthe crank 16 forward and rocking therock-shaft 15 in the direction indicated bythe arrow in Fig.4, movingthe arm 22 out from under-the pawl 30 and permitting said pawl; to.drop.

into engagement with the ratchet-wheel 34.

Thecontinued rotation of the ratchet-wheel thereupon causes the arm 29and sleeve 28- to rotate, the shaft 26 of course rotating also.Immediately upon the release of the lever 17 by the tappet 20 of .thecheck-row wire it is I returned to its normal position by the action ofthe spring 43, which also returns the arm 22 into position to engage thefinger 40 ofthe pawl 30 as it is carried around by the rotation of theratchet-wheel 34.1 The shaft 26 therefore rotates'only once for eachactuation of the lever 17. As soon as the pawl 3O reaches the arm 22itsfinger 40 rides up on the point of the arm 22, moving'out ofengagement with the. ratchet-wheel 34, which continues its rotationindependently of I the pawl 30, and consequently independentlyof theseed-plate shaft 26. The parts are so adjusted that a single rotation ofthe seed-plate shaft 26 moves the seed-plate far enough to deposit therequisite number of seeds in the seedtube, and consequently as theseedplate shaft is rotated once and only once as i the machine passesfrom one tappet to another of the check-row wire the depositing of thesame quantity of seed in every hill is insured, the only possibility ofvariation lying in the fallibility of the seed-plate itself.

I have described my improvements specifically as illustrated; but I wishit to be understood that my invention is not restricted to the specificdetails of the construction shown and described except in so far as suchdetails are particularly claimed. Furthermore, my invention is notrestricted in its application to corn-planters alone, but may be used inother seeding-machines in so far as it is applicable thereto.

In regard to my improved clutch mechanism it is evident that myinvention, broadly considered, is not restricted to use only incombination with the specific form of throwout arm herein described orto mounting such arm rigidly on the rock-shaft, although in a morerestricted sense such combinations are included in and form part of myinvention.

That which I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is

1. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, driving mechanism, clutchmechanism for connecting said seed-plate shaft with said drivingmechanism for rotating said shaft, a rock-shaft,and a throw-out devicemounted on and rigidly connected to said rock-shaft for operating saidclutch mechanism to disconnect said seed-plate shaft from said drivingmechanism, substantially as described.

2. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, driving mechanism, clutchmembers adapted to connect said seed-plate shaft with said drivingmechanism for rotating said shaft, a rock-shaft, and a throw-out armrigidly connected to said shaft and normally lying in position to holdsaid clutch members out of engagement, and being moved by the rocking ofsaid rock-shaft to permit said clutch members to engage, substantiallyas described.

3. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, driving mechanism, clutchmechanism for connecting said seed-plate shaft with said drivingmechanism for rotating said shaft, a rock-shaft, a throw-out devicemounted on and connected to said rock-shaft for operating said clutchmechanism to disconnect said seed-plate shaft from said drivingmechanism, and a spring for normally holding said throw-out device inoperative position, substantially as described.

4:- The combination of a seed-plate shaft, driving mechanism, clutchmechanism for connecting said seed-plate shaft with said drivingmechanism for rotating said shaft, a rock-shaft, a throw-out devicemounted on and rigidly connected to said rock-shaft for operating saidclutch mechanism to disconnect said seed-plate shaft from saiddrivingmechanism, a check-row-wire-operated lever for rocking said rock-shaft,and a spring for normally holding said throw-out device and saidcheck-row-wire-operated lever in operative position, substantially asdescribed.

5. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, driving mechanism, clutchmembers adapted to connect said seed-plate shaft with said drivingmechanism for rotating said shaft, a rock-shaft, athrow-out arm rigidlyconnected to said shaft and normally lying in position to hold saidclutch members out of engagement, and being moved by the rocking of saidrock-shaft to permit said clutch members to engage, acheck-row-wire-operated lever for operating said rock-shaft, and aspring for normally holding said lever and said throwout arm inoperative position, substantially as described.

6. In a corn-planter, the combination of driving-wheels, a seed-plateshaft, a clutch member carried by said shaft and adapted to rotateindependently thereof, means connecting said clutch member with thecarrying wheels, whereby it will be rotated by the for- Ward movement ofthe planter, a clutch member carried by said seed-plate shaft andfixedly secured thereto, said clutch member being adapted to engage saidfirst-mentioned clutch member for rotating said shaft, a rockshaft, athrow-out device mounted on and rigidly secured to said shaft, saidthrow-out arm being adapted to disconnect said clutch members when inits normal position, a spring for holding said throw-out device in itsnormal position, and a check-row-wire-operated lever for rocking saidshaft to move said throw-out device out of its operative positionsubstantially as described.

7. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, a clutch composed of aratchet-Wheel and a pawl, one of said clutch members being rigidlyconnected to said shaft so as to rotate therewith, means operated by theforward movement of the machine for rotating the other clutch member,and throw-out mechanism for disconnecting said clutch members,consisting of a rock-shaft, a throw-out arm rigidly mounted thereon, andmeans for rocking said shaft, substantially as described.

8. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, a clutch composed of aratchet-wheel and a pawl, one of said clutch members being rigidlyconnected to said shaft so as to rotate therewith, means operated by theforward movement of the machine for rotating the other clutch member,throw-out mechanism for disconnecting said clutch members, consisting ofa rock-shaft, a throw-out arm rigidly mounted thereon, means for rockingsaid shaft, and a spring normally holding said throw-out arm inoperative position, substantially as described.

' 9. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, a clutch composed of aratchet-wheel and a pawl, one of said clutch members being rigidlyconnected to said shaft so as to rotate therewith, means operated by theforward movement of the machine for rotating the other clutch member,throw-out mechanism for disconnectingsaid clutch members, consisting ofa rock-shaft,.a throw-out arm rigidly mounted thereon, a lever forrocking said shaft, and a spring normally holding said rock-shaft andlever in operativesposition, substantially as described.

10. The combinationlof a seed-plate shaft, a clutch composed of a wheelhaving ratchetteeth on its periphery and a pawl adapted to engage saidratchet-teeth, one of. said clutch members being rigidly connected tosaid shaft so as to rotate therewith, means operated by the forwardmovement of the machine for rotating the other clutch member, andthrowout mechanism for disconnecting said clutch members at intervals,substantially as described.

11. The combination of a seed-plate shaft,

- a clutch composed of a wheel having ratchetteeth 011 its peripheryanda pawl adapted to engage said ratchet-teeth, one of said clutch membersbeing rigidly connected to said shaft so as to rotate therewith, meansoperated by the forward movement of the machine for rotating the otherclutch member, and throwout mechanism for disconnecting said clutchmembers, consisting of a rock-shaft, a throwout arm mountedthereon andadapted when in operative position to intercept saidpawl and move it outof engagement with said ratchet-wheel, and means for rocking said shaft,substantially as described.

12. The combination of aseed-plate shaft, a clutch composed of aratchet-wheel and a pawl, said pawl being rigidly connected with saidshaft was to rotate therewith, means operated by the forward movement ofthe machine for rotating said ratchet-wheel, a throwout arm fordisconnecting said pawl and ratchet-wheel, said arm being adapted to lienormally in a position to intercept said pawl, friction mechanism forholding said pawl closely in engagement withsaidthrow-out arm when it isdisengaged from said ratchet= wheel, and means for moving said throw-outarm out of engagement withsaid pawl, sub stantially as described. 7

13. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, a clutch composed of 'aratchet-wheel and a pawl, said pawl being rigidly connected to said.shaft so as to rotate therewith, means operated by the forward movementof the machine for rotating said ratchet-wheel, and a throw-out arm fordisconnecting said pawl with said ratchet-wheel, said ratchet-wheeland'pawl having friction bearing-surfaces between them, substantially asand for the purpose specified. 1

14. The combination of a seed-plate shaft, a clutch composed of aratchet-wheel and a pawl, said pawl being rigidly connected to saidshaft so as to rotate therewith, means operated by the forward movementof the machine for rotating said ratchet-wheel, a throwout arm fordisconnecting said pawl with said ratchet-wheel, said ratchet-wheel andpawl having friction bearing surfaces between them, and a spring forpressing said friction bearing-surfaces together, substantially asdescribed.

15. Thecombination of a seed-plate shaft, a ratchet-wheel looselymounted thereon, a pawl carried by said shaft and rigidlyconnectedthereto so as to rotate therewith, said pawl being adapted toengage .said ratchetwh'eel, means operated by the forward movementof themachine for rotating said ratchetwheel, said ratchet-wheel and pawlhaving friction bearing-surfaces between them for causing the pawl toclear theteeth ofthe ratchet, a spring for pressing said ratchetwheeland pawl together,a throw-out device for disconnecting said pawl withsaid ratchetwheel, and means for moving said throw-out deviceto permitsaid pawl to engage said ratchet-wheel at intervals, substantially asdescribed. 3 V

16. The combination of a seed-platershaft, a ratchet-wheel looselymountedthereon, a pawl rigidlymounted on said shaft so as to rotatetherewith, a sprocket-wheel connected with said ratchet-wheel, a springon saidshaft, said spring acting to press said ratchet wheel and pawltogether, a throw-out'arm adapted normally to intercept said pawl andmove it out of engagement with said ratchet-wheel,-a rock-shaft uponwhich said throw-outarm is mounted, a spring for holding said throw-outarm in operative position, and a lever-.-for rocking said shaft,substantially as described.

I JONATHAN H. SAMUELS. Witnesses: t Y

Monnrs GEISMAR, W. A. ROSENFIELD.

